Soc Final Exam - Comprehensive Review

29. French sociologist Emile Durkheim observed that rapid social change and a more specialized division of labor produce strain in society; these strains lead to a breakdown in traditional organization, values, and authority and to a dramatic increase in ____.

a. anomie

26. In relation to the study of homelessness in American society, ____ would place emphasis on the struggle between social classes, especially how the policies of the wealthy push certain groups into unemployment and homelessness, and would examine welfare program reform.

a. conflict theorists

17. A central idea represented in the film Her is _______.

a. dependence on computer technology is making us anti-social

26. How is genetic discrimination referred to in GATTACA?

a. genoism

23. Drawing from Food, Inc., which process demonstrates the "irrationality of rationality?"

a. humans working on an assembly line for low wages

1. According to Emile Durkheim (What Makes Sociology Different?) what distinguishes a "social fact"?

a. it derives from a collective social experience

11. Sociologist Max Weber's term ____ refers to the extent to which individuals have access to important societal resources such as food, clothing, shelter, education, and health care.

a. life chances

27. According to Henig (What is it about 20-somethings), society should respond in all these ways to the public issue of "emerging adulthood," EXCEPT:

a. limit access to public assistance to recent college graduates

2. According to the social class model developed by sociologists Dennis Gilbert and Joseph Kahl, two-year or four-year college degrees have replaced the high school diploma as an entry-level requirement for employment in many ____ occupations, including medical technicians and nurses. This social class represents an estimated 30 percent of the U. S. population.

a. middle-class

23. Educationally, no matter which racial group, those with ____ have the highest rates living in poverty.

a. no high school diploma

6. According to sociologist Karl Marx, the ____ (working class) consists of those who must sell their labor to the owners in order to earn enough money to survive.

a. proletariat

24. In the BeenVerified commercial, the company offers the service of selling background checks to the average citizens. The company asserts that it can do this because it compiles data from _____.

a. public records

21. With ____ research, interpretative description (words) rather than statistics (numbers) are used to analyze underlying meanings and patterns of social relationships.

a. qualitative

15. Locations like the DMV, the airport, the mall, and traffic court make you want to scream get me out of here, because these places are organized on the principles of ______.

a. rationality

4. When sociologists define poverty, they make a distinction between two levels of poverty. These are:

a. relative and absolute poverty

19. Shearing and Stenning (From Panopticon to Disney World) refer to the way people allow themselves to be managed at Disney World as ________.

a. structured compliance

27. Why is surveillance an issue of sociological interest according to David Lyon in Surveillance Society?

a. surveillance contributes to social order and reinforces social and economic divisions

1. According to sociologist Diana Pearce, ____refers to the trend in which women are disproportionately represented among individuals living in poverty.

a. the feminization of poverty

3. To make a living or earn a college degree, we must participate in organizations that can provide us these opportunities. Although we have some choice regarding where we work or attend school, _____ organizations are not always completely voluntary.

a. utilitarian

6. According to David Lyon in Surveillance Society, when do individuals become aware of the monitoring of their personal data?

a. when people's personal data is compromised or breached

18. Sociologist Dennis Gilbert compares the distribution of income to a national pie that has been sliced into portions. In 2004, the wealthiest 20 percent of households received approximately ____ percent of the total income pie.

b. 50

14. When considering age, ____ have the highest percentage living in poverty no matter which age group one looks at

b. African-Americans

7. _____ produce knowledge that becomes a commodity. This knowledge can be leased or sold to others, or it can be used to generate goods, services, or more knowledge. The economy is based on involvement with people and communications technologies such as the mass media, computers, and the World Wide Web.

b. Postindustrial societies

17. ____ are the most widely used research methods in the social sciences because they make it possible to study things that are not directly observable--such as people's attitudes and beliefs--and to describe a population too large to observe directly.

b. Surveys

8. From the reading "The Sociological Imagination" by Mills, what is the power of the sociological imagination?

b. The ability to develop social awareness and make conscious choices to slightly alter society

20. C.Wright Mills would interpret widespread unemployment as a result of large-scale economic changes in the society that include businesses downsizing or closing, lack of credit to support small businesses, international competition and flooding the U.S. marketplace with exports as ___________.

b. a public issue

9. Henig ( "What is it about 20-somethings) notes that in 1904, social scientists recognized a new life stage. This new stage was ____________

b. adolescence

15. Structural problems contribute to both unemployment and underemployment. Corporations have been disinvesting in the United States, displacing millions of people from their jobs. Economists refer to this displacement as the ____ of America.

b. deindustrialization

5. The U.S. Social Security Administration has established an official poverty line. The poverty line is computed by ____.

b. determining the cost of a minimally nutritious diet (short-term) and multiplying this figure by three to allow for nonfood costs

15. A ____ of education in the United States is the perpetuation of gender, racial, and class inequalities, which may threaten the capacity of a society to adapt and survive.

b. dysfunction

3. Elijah Anderson conducted a/an ______________ of two different neighborhoods in Philadelphia, one African-American and low income and the other, racially mixed and from mid-to high income. He spent numerous hours on the streets documenting peoples experiences and perceptions of changes in their everyday lives over several years.

b. ethnographic study

22. Which selection is NOT a cause of Jack's insomnia in the film Fight Club?

b. he worries about being successful in his profession

7. C. Wright Mills (The Sociological Imagination) states, individuals are "seldom aware of the intricate connection between the patterns of their own lives and the course of world history, ordinary men (and women) do not usually know what this connection means for the kinds of men (and women) they are becoming and for the kinds of history-making in which they might take part." What is the most precise interpretation of this passage?

b. often, individuals do not realize that what is happening in their society affects their private lives.

14. A theory helps interpret reality in a distinct way by providing a framework in which observations may be logically ordered. Sociologists refer to this theoretical framework as a ____, which is an overall approach to or viewpoint on some subject.

b. perspective

30. According to sociologists Kingsley Davis and Wilbert Moore (Davis-Moore thesis), the definitive explanation for social inequality can be summarized as follows:

b. positions that are most important for the survival of society must be filled by the most qualified people who are highly rewarded for their scarce talent, extensive training, or both

12. According to sociologist Max Weber's system of stratification, ____ is the ability of people or groups to achieve their goals despite opposition from others.

b. power

20. David Lyon (Surveillance Society) explains that surveillance has "two-faces" in society. Which selection represents the "restricting" face of surveillance?

b. public and private agencies use database technology to categorize and rate individuals by different traits

13. According to the functionalist perspective, when a system is characterized by ____, the majority of members share a common set of values, beliefs, and behavioral expectations.

b. societal consensus

21. You are a student, teammate, friend, member of your sorority or fraternity, and an employee. All of these are social positions within your _____ and are all _____ statuses.

b. status set; achieved

10. According to David Lyon in Surveillance Society, how does widespread use of surveillance technologies increase social inequality in society?

b. surveillance is used to categorize and classify people, enhancing the life conditions and opportunities of some while limiting those of others

18. What does it mean to be a "Coppertop" or "Battery" in an advanced-capitalist society as suggested in the film the Matrix?

b. the capitalist system acquires more riches and power through the extraction of people's life-force or energy while they work and consume.

9. Which selection best represents the "Panopticon" effect?

b. the illusion of round-the-clock surveillance as a tool of human control and discipline

17. Which one is a popular assumption of the U.S. class structure?

b. the majority of Americans are middle class

25. Sociologist W.E.B. Du Bois is noted for identifying and theorizing about_____________.

b. the phenomenon of double-consciousness among African Americans

3. About two-thirds of all adults living in poverty are women. In 2006, single-parent families headed by women had a ____ percent poverty rate as compared with a 10 percent poverty rate for two-parent families.

c. 28

7. ____ theorists view education as the "elevator" to social mobility. Improvements in the educational achievement levels (measured in number of years of schooling completed) of the poor, people of color, and white women have been cited as evidence that students' abilities are now more important than their class, race, or gender.

c. Functionalist

14. _____ is the complex framework of societal institutions (such as the economy, politics, and religion) and the social practices (such as rules and social roles) that make a society and that organize and establish limits on people's behavior.

c. Social structure

21. In relation to health characteristics of poor people in the United States, which of the following is not accurate?

c. Through welfare benefits, most of the poor receive preventive medical and dental checkups.

8. ____ include(s) property such as buildings, land, farms, houses, factories, and cars, as well as other assets such as bank accounts, corporate stocks, bonds, and insurance policies. It is computed by subtracting all debt obligations and converting the remaining assets into cash.

c. Wealth

24. According to the text's discussion of race, ethnicity, and poverty ____.

c. a disproportionate percentage of the impoverished in the United States is made up of African Americans, Latinos/as, and Native Americans

1. George Ritzer (The McDonald System) would explain that a local Farmers Market represents _________.

c. a social space that is not overcome by rationality

23. Emerging adults are facing all of these cultural changes EXCEPT:

c. ability to secure a long-term, stable job that will support you until your retirement

13. The film segment "The Trouble with Tofu," showed an example of ________________ over which food market would be the primary source for food shopping in Burlington, Vermont.

c. class conflict

29. Sociologists often combine three social characteristics to determine a person's socioeconomic status (SES). What are the social characteristics?

c. education, income, and occupation

5. The idea of observing how people lived, finding out what they thought, and doing so in a systematic manner that could be verified did not take hold until the 19th century and the social upheavals brought on by _____________.

c. industrialization

10. When Carlos's grandfather migrated to the United States, he had completed six years of schooling and worked as a grape-picker in California. Carlos's father completed high school and worked for twenty years as a clerk in a large state agency. Through the efforts of his father and grandfather, Carlos was able to graduate from college and medical school, and he now has a thriving medical practice in southern California. Carlos's family exemplifies ____ mobility.

c. intergenerational

6. According to Emile Durkheim (What makes sociology different?), what makes religion a social fact?

c. it represents a set of beliefs, rituals, and practices that pre-exists the individual and that the individual adopts through their socialization

12. In the segment "The Gatekeeprs" in the Matrix, which selection is NOT a reason for why most people prefer to be part of a conventional society rather than challenge it (become unplugged from the system or Matrix)?

c. maintaining authenticity

13. According to David Lyon in Surveillance Society, who is watching us?

c. powerful databases owned by organizations geographically remote from us but embedded in our everyday lives

25. What central concern does Jill Scott (Something Ain't Right) raise in her song about surveillance in U.S. society?

c. questioning the use of surveillance, she points out that surveillance does not keep guns, drugs, and dirty cops from entering her community.

4. For your research, you use existing sources of data like the U.S. Census, public records, and raw data collected by other researchers. This is an example of __________________.

c. secondary analysis

8. To sociologists, a(n) _____ is larger, more specialized group in which members engage in more impersonal, goal-oriented relationships for a limited period of time.

c. secondary group

11. To study crowd behavior at a URI sporting event, which sociological perspective will you apply?

c. symbolic interaction

12. You are aware that environmental degradation in one region of the world may have an adverse effect on people around the globe. Your awareness illustrates the concept of ____________.

c. the global sociological imagination

16. Social inequality and poverty have both economic and structural sources. According to your text, the major cause of poverty is ____.

c. the low wages paid for many jobs

26. According to the social class model developed by sociologists Dennis Gilbert and Joseph Kahl, single mothers are overrepresented in the ____ because of the lack of jobs, lack of affordable child care, and many other impediments to the mother's future and that of her children. They must rely on public or private assistance programs for their survival.

c. underclass

16. What is the central message in the video Look-UP by Gary Turk?

c. we are not participating fully in all that life has to offer when we spend a great deal of time staring at our devices

16. According to Durkheim (What Makes Sociology Different?), all these events illustrate the concept of a"social current" EXCEPT:

d. A high school reunion

10. French philosopher ____ is credited with having coined the term sociology to describe a new science that would engage in the study of society.

d. Auguste Comte

27. In the discussion of poverty and children in the United States, which of the following statements was not cited?

d. Children as a group are better off now than in any previous decade.

2. In Society in America, British sociologist ____ examined religion, politics, child rearing, slavery, and immigration to the United States, paying special attention to social distinctions based on class, race, and gender.

d. Harriet Martineau

28. Sociologist ____ developed a multidimensional approach to social stratification that reflects the interplay among wealth, prestige, and power.

d. Max Weber

19. ____ is the movement of individuals or groups from one level in a stratification system to another. This movement can be either upward or downward.

d. Social mobility

24. According to Durkheim, what are the characteristics of social facts?

d. They are external to the individual, they constrain, and they coerce.

11. Which choice best describes the society in the film GATTACA?

d. a society that engages in genetic apartheid by distinguishing between superior and inferior individuals

22. According to sociologist Karl Marx, continual exploitation results in workers' ____--a feeling of powerlessness and estrangement from other people and from oneself. It develops as workers manufacture goods that embody their creative talents, but the goods do not belong to them.

d. alienation

2. Shearing and Stenning (From Panopticon to Disney World) refers to all the way that the Disney Corporation manages crowds at their amusement park as _______.

d. corporate policing

4. The segment of Food, Inc. you saw in class illustrated the McDonald System and all the ways it has transformed US food production and consumption. All of these points were made in the segment EXCEPT:

d. due to the food demand of the fast food industry, we now have greater diversity of fresh produce, fruits, and meats in our food supply.

22. Which of the following is NOT one of the ideal-type characteristics of bureaucratic organizations, as specified by Max Weber?

d. employment based on personal reputation

30. The ____ states that societies develop social structures, or institutions that persist because they play a part in helping society survive. These institutions include the family, education, government, religion, and the economy.

d. functionalist

28. According to Shearing and Stenning (From Panopticon to Disney World), which statement is true about social control at Disney World?

d. it is more like Brave New World than 1984

30. What are the human consequences of being a "Coppertop" or "Battery" in society?

d. it restricts one's imagination and creativity

25. According to sociologist Erik Wright's Marxian model, persons in the ____ have substantial control over the means of production and over workers. However, these upper-level supervisors and professionals typically do not participate in key corporate decisions such as how to invest profit.

d. managerial class

9. Sociologist Erik Wright, in his Marxian model, identified four classes. Which of the following classes was not included in Wright's model?

d. middle class

19. _______________ occur within the character of the individual and within the range of his immediate relations with others; they have to do with his self and with those limited areas of social life of which he is directly and personally aware.

d. personal troubles

28. In the Matrix, Morpheus tells Neo "...you can see it when you turn on your TV, you can feel it when you go to work, when you go to church, when you pay your taxes." What is Morpheus describing?

d. social institutions

18. Emile Durkheim (What Makes Sociology Different?) proposes that the best way to study social facts is by using __________.

d. statistics

20. When considering the "actual" social class structure of the U.S., all of these statements are true EXCEPT:

d. the middle class is the largest segment of the class structure

5. As noted by George Ritzer, all of these are properties of McDonaldization EXCEPT:

d. uniqueness

29. Zygmut Bauman asserts that in a post-industrial, advanced capitalist society, individual are valued primarily as _____ and these are _____ statuses.

d. workers and consumers; achieved